Description & Technical information

Caucasian rugs come from Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaïdjan.The weavers had an excellent reputation. In the 16th century, Shah Abbas forced about 27.000 Armenian families to move to his new capital Isfahan.They largely contributed to the making of the most glamourous rugs produced in the royal manufactures.

The Caucasian tradition is spontaneous, a handicraft made by simple villagers. It is not so much refinement as identity values and originality that makes them valuable. It often was a family story and these home-made rugs were produced in limited sizes

The Soviet Russian invasion changed the situation. The working surrounding and atmosphere drastically changed. People were asked to forget about rural handicraft and were asked to work in strict organized workplaces. Naïve inspiration was replaced by industrial planning. The individuality of the rugs was taken over by a collective work, designed on paper, aiming for perfection and regularity, the Caucasian carpet became: all the opposite of what made the charm of the village production. They became stiff, rigid, almost lifeless.The samples of the 19th century and very beginning of the 20th century are a valuable testimony of identity lost and days of yore.